Just One Day by Gayle Forman is a series that has been sitting on my bookshelf for years now, and I am glad that I was finally able to pick it up. It is a story about travel and identity, and the main character is so real. I tried reading the sequel, but it didn’t compare to the first book at all, so I set it aside.
Series: Just One Day
Author: Gayle Forman
Also by this author: I Was Here
Publisher: Speak
Genres: Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult Fiction
Publication Date: August 20, 2013
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A breathtaking journey toward self-discovery and true love, from the author of If I Stay.
When sheltered American good girl Allyson "LuLu" Healey first meets laid-back Dutch actor Willem De Ruiter at an underground performance of Twelfth Night in England, there's an undeniable spark. After just one day together, that spark bursts into a flame, or so it seems to Allyson, until the following morning, when she wakes up after a whirlwind day in Paris to discover that Willem has left. Over the next year, Allyson embarks on a journey to come to terms with the narrow confines of her life, and through Shakespeare, travel, and a quest for her almost-true-love, to break free of those confines.
Series Review: Just One Day by Gayle Forman
❀ Set in Europe
This series tells the story of a girl who spends a perfect day in Paris with a stranger. The next day, he is gone before she wakes up. Allyson returns home and goes to college, but can’t stop thinking about Willem. This book is all about the aftermath of a perfect day and discovering your true identity. I loved reading about Allyson’s adventures in Europe, especially since I am a sucker for books about travel. If you are looking for a book that is both cute and heartbreaking, I would definitely recommend Just One Day.
❀ Independent Main Character
I really enjoyed Allyson’s character. She is independent and ambitious, and she really transforms throughout the book. Allyson learns to take risks and go out of her comfort zone every once in a while. Her character is so relatable, and the emotions she feels are so real. I just wish she was a little bit more considerate of some of her friends.
❀ Sequel isn’t as good
I tried to get into the sequel, Just One Year after the massive cliffhanger at the end of Just One Day, but I just couldn’t. From what I read so far, it is basically the same story, but told from Willem’s point of view. To me, it wasn’t as interesting, and I didn’t like the new characters as much. I feel like the two books should have been combined into one.
❀ An Inspiring Story
Just One Day series by Gayle Forman is an inspiring story about the aftermath of a one day adventure. I really enjoyed the main character and her transformation. I personally didn’t enjoy the sequel, but the beginning is worth the read to find out why Willem behaves the way he does.
About Gayle Forman
Award-winning author and journalist Gayle Forman has written several bestselling novels for young adults, including the Just One Series, I Was Here, Where She Went and the #1 New York Times bestseller If I Stay, which has been translated into more than 40 languages and in 2014 was adapted into a major motion picture.
Gayle published Leave Me, her first novel starring adults in 2016 and her latest novel, I Have Lost My Way, comes out in March of 2018.
Gayle lives with her husband and daughters in Brooklyn.
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Olivia ❀ Canadian YA book blogger, Starbucks lover, & professional bibliophile.